- Recent incidents underscore the urgent need for home insurance.
- Bharat Griha Raksha offers standardized policies covering diverse perils.
- Insure homes at reconstruction cost, ensuring full financial protection.
Most of us think about insurance only when something goes wrong. On June 3, a fire tore through a hotel in Delhi’s Malviya Nagar, killing at least 21 people and forcing over 40 to be rescued. Days later, the monsoon arrived over Kerala, bringing heavy downpours that had already caused structural damage in parts of the state.
Two threats, arriving together. That makes this a good time to ask a simple question: Does your home have fire and flood cover? And if it does, is it actually enough?
Start here If You Have No Policy
If you do not have a fire insurance policy for your home, make it your priority.
The Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) has created a simple, standardised product for this: Bharat Griha Raksha. Every general insurer in India must offer it, and all of them must follow the same format. The policy is sold as “XYZ General Insurance Company Limited, Bharat Griha Raksha Policy.” Similar standard products exist for small and medium businesses and industrial units, too.
What Bharat Griha Raksha Covers
The policy covers your building, your contents, or both. General contents include everyday items such as furniture and personal belongings, as well as valuables like jewellery or artwork.
If you own the home, you can insure the building alone or the building and its contents as separate covers. If you are a tenant, you can insure your contents while the owner takes care of the structure.
The coverage is broad. It includes fire, explosion or implosion, lightning, earthquake, storms of various kinds, tsunami, flood and inundation, subsidence, landslide, rock slide, bush fire, forest fire, and damage caused by external physical objects such as vehicles, falling trees or aircraft. Riot, strikes and malicious damage are covered. So are acts of terrorism, and theft that occurs within seven days of any of the above events and is caused by them.
Each cover comes with defined conditions and exclusions. Reading the policy document carefully is always worthwhile.
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How Much Cover Is Enough
Your home must be insured at its current reconstruction cost, not its market price. Claims are settled on the basis of actual repair or rebuilding bills.
Contents are automatically insured for 20 per cent of the building’s sum insured. You can increase this limit by paying an additional premium.
There are useful add-ons too. These include cover for loss of rent if the home becomes unlivable after an insured event, rent for alternate accommodation, and a personal accident cover of Rs 5 lakh each for the insured and their spouse.
The Cost Is Lower Than Most Expect
A three-year policy for a Rs 10-lakh sum insured costs under Rs 6,000. If you have taken a home loan, your lender will already insist on insurance up to at least the loan amount. But that is only the minimum cover. Full protection means insuring your home entirely, not just the portion the bank has a stake in.
Extreme weather is becoming more frequent. Your home is likely your largest asset, and now might be the right time to make sure it is fully safeguarded.
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